This week, writer and comedian Josh Gondelman joins the show to cover a story from his hometown of Boston: the still-unsolved Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum heist. In 1990, two thieves dressed as police officers entered the museum in the middle of the night and carried out what remains the largest property theft in history, stealing 13 paintings valued at approximately $500 million.

Despite several mob-affiliated suspects over the years, the stolen works were never recovered, and the case eventually went cold.

https://www.gardnermuseum.org/organization/theft

https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/a-new-clue-emerges-in-the-gardner-museum-art-heist-saga-180979651/

https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/five-things-know-about-isabella-stewart-gardner-art-heist-180977448/

https://www.bostonglobe.com/2022/02/28/metro/whodunit-gardner-museum-heist-remains-unsolved-decades-later-with-long-list-suspects-most-them-dead/

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Danny is joined by Emmy Award–winning television host, veteran journalist, and bestselling author Tamron Hall to discuss the latest book in her Jordan Manning series, Watch Where They Hide. Tamron shares the real-life cases that inspired the novel, how she identifies with the character of Jordan, and the emotional process of writing the book.

They also dive into the media phenomenon of Missing White Woman Syndrome and how crime reporting has evolved since the start of Tamron’s career, particularly when it comes to the racial profiling of suspects.

https://www.tamronhall.tv/

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Danny is back this week with another con artist from Down Under: Samantha Azzopardi. The episode digs into her innumerable fake identities—including a 14-year-old girl and the actress Dakota Johnson—and traces her path from the Sydney suburbs to Dublin, Calgary, and prison, before returning to Australia, where she once again ran into trouble with the law.

SOURCES:

https://www.womensweekly.com.au/news/samantha-azzopardi-true-story/

https://www.theage.com.au/national/victoria/international-con-artist-arrested-on-fraud-charges-in-northcote-20231026-p5effh.html

https://www.bbc.com/news/world-australia-57284621

https://www.9news.com.au/national/melbourne-news-alleged-con-artist-samantha-azzopardi-withdraws-bail-application/1aa9adac-602d-4d36-a8f0-495c133720e7

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This week, Danny covers the civil fraud case of Denver pastor Eli Regalado and his wife, Kaitlyn, who claimed they were directed by God to sell millions in fake cryptocurrency through the Kingdom Wealth Exchange. The couple is accused of pocketing $1.3 million to fund an extravagant lifestyle that included a Range Rover, vacations, luxury handbags, and more—in what a Denver District Court judge called “a case of just unmitigated greed.”

SOURCES:

https://www.washingtonpost.com/nation/2024/01/23/crypto-pastor-colorado-god-eli-regalado/

https://www.bbc.com/news/world-us-canada-68072665

https://people.com/denver-pastor-says-the-lord-told-us-to-steal-from-christians-8548486

https://www.denverpost.com/2024/01/30/eli-kaitlyn-regalado-cryptocurrency-scam-accounts-frozen-indxcoin/

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Danny is back to cover the self-proclaimed “Jeffrey Dahmer of fraud,” Steve Comisar. First, there’s a personal scam story involving a recent Uber Pool trip that went completely off the rails. Then, the episode dives into the extensive grifting résumé of Beverly Hills conman Steve Comisar, who shilled everything from solar-powered clothes dryers to diet pills to oil wells—and even scammed an 84-year-old man out of $500,000.

After several prison stints and failed attempts at becoming a Hollywood actor, Comisar is now pursuing the most noble profession of all: true crime podcasting.

SOURCES:

https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1999-jul-24-me-59160-story.html

https://www.sabrinaerdely.com/docs/TheCreepWithTheGoldenTongue.pdf

https://www.einnews.com/pr_news/613431696/on-the-road-to-redemption-with-former-con-man-steve-comisar

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Danny is back for the final time to cover Willy’s Chocolate Experience in Glasgow—an event organized by a company called House of Illuminati that gave more Fyre Fest than Pure Imagination. Danny gets into it all, from the AI-generated, spelling-error-riddled poster to the off-brand character of The Unknown (a terrifying masked figure who “lives in the walls”), and an Oompa Loompa who looked like she wished she were literally anywhere else.

Event attendees complained that they didn’t quite get what they paid £35 for and even called the police, though whether anything illegal actually occurred remains to be seen.

Thank you to all the listeners who’ve been with us along the way—from our first episode (fittingly about the actual Fyre Fest) to now.

Follow Danny @kashmeredanny

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Danny is joined by Sky Borgman, director and producer of the new documentary series The Truth About Jim, now streaming on MAX. The documentary follows 32-year old Sierra Barter, as she investigates whether or not her step grandfather, Jim Mordecai, was a serial killer. Skye shares her storytelling approach, how Jim might have flown under the radar for so long, and why there was such a serial killing spike in the Bay Area at that time.

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This week, Danny covers the viral story from The Cut’s financial advice columnist Charlotte Cowles, who became the unlikely victim of a scam that cost her $50,000. The episode breaks down Cowles’s article, which details how, over the course of a single day, scammers posing as Amazon employees and FTC agents convinced her she was the victim of extensive identity theft, with multiple warrants out for her arrest for cybercrimes, money laundering, and drug trafficking.

Cowles ultimately withdrew and handed over $50,000 from her bank account before realizing it had all been a lie.

SOURCES:

https://www.thecut.com/article/amazon-scam-call-ftc-arrest-warrants.html

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This week, Danny covers the mysterious story of Australian conwoman Melissa Caddick. After falling victim to a romance scam in her early 20s, she pivoted to becoming a scammer herself, cheating friends and family out of millions. As the law began to catch up with her, Melissa mysteriously disappeared, only for a disembodied foot matching her DNA to wash up on the beach months later. Danny gets into the ins and outs of Melissa's scams and disappearance, as well as the theories about whether or not she faked her own death.

SOURCES:

https://www.cnn.com/2023/05/25/australia/australia-melissa-caddick-fraud-coroner-death-intl-hnk/index.html

https://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/2023/may/26/the-lady-vanishes-fraudster-melissa-caddick-is-dead-but-the-intrigue-lives-on

https://www.smh.com.au/national/the-forever-friend-the-former-boss-the-ex-husband-the-early-victims-of-fraudster-melissa-caddick-20210304-p577wo.html

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Betches News Director Amanda Duberman joins the show to unpack the second season of MAX’s docuseries The Curious Case of Natalia Grace, which centers on Natalia’s side of the story. The episode covers Natalia’s traumatic experiences with the Barnett family, what unfolded with her new family, the Mans, the “twist” ending, and why this style of docuseries can feel so manipulative.

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